Beer: Ratings & Reviews

Reviews by Steamer:

Beautiful dark Amber color with a nice orangish head. Spices and a hint of sweet pumpkin. Excellent flavor, a real seasonal that is different from others I've had, the pumpkin taste is there but not over powering, nutmeg with a sweet after taste, no bitterness. Mouth feel: Medium carbonation and body. Overall: A very pleasant surprise. Sam Adams hit the mark with this one.

T: Molasses, honey, strawberry preserves. Surprisingly, not much of a pumpkin flavor. A bit too sweet after the second sip.

M: Medium bodied.

O: A pretty good seasonal from Sam Adams. This is a nice alternative to the droves of lighter/smoother pumpkin ales that flood the market around this time of year. A bit too sweet for my tastes, but good in small doses.

22 oz bottle. Pours ruby amber with a medium creamy off white head that goes to a thin film and leaves some lacing.

The aroma is sweet, slightly vegetal, malts with a lot of spicy cinnamon and some ginger.

The flavor is sweet caramel malts with some roast and a little dark fruit. It's followed by a ton of heavy spice - mostly cinnamon with some ginger. The mouthfeel is medium to full bodied with smooth carbonation.

Overall, a decent pumpkin beer. It's overly spiced with too much cinnamon. But the base is kind of a winter warmer old ale with some light roast and dark fruit that is kind of cool and plays well with the pumpkin.

Presentation: It was poured from a brown 1 pint 6 oz bottle into a tulip glass. The label lists the abv at 8.5% abv and it also lists the beers ingredients.

Appearance: Fat Jack has a dark garnet red color with good clarity. I can just make out some nice lively carbonation flowing up though the beer. From a slow pour down the middle of the glass I got a nice tight collar of foam. It’s light beige in color and hangs on well. This makes for some cool lacing on the glass.

Smell: The aroma is full of tasty spices and malty goodness. It brings notes of cinnamon and fresh out of the oven ginger bread with a nice boozy kick.

Taste / Palate: There is a lot going on in this full bodied festive beer. The base has a solid gingerbread like maltiness with loads of cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice. It also has notes of vanilla and a very mild bourbon like boozy character. In the middle of all this there is a very mild squash/sweet potatoe like sweetness. The finish brings some light herbal hop bitterness and dryness which blends with the dry spice within. The dry spice lingers and begs you to take another sip.

Overall: This is what I expect from an imperial pumpkin. Nice bold and sweet flavors. This has elements of an English barleywine. I love the deep rich caramel and pumpkin. I will pick this up again next year.